Apparatus for sorting clothing and other articles



A. M. STOK QE. APPARATUS FOR SORTING CLOTHING AND OTHER ARTICLES.

APPLICATION FILED 056.16, I9I9.

Patented Aug. 23, 1921.

6137113 77?. Sta/foe I pins bearing its number.

said bracket.

PATENT OFFICE.

ASHLEY M. STOKOE, OF ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA.

APPARATUS FOR sorvrme CLOTHING AND OTHER ARTIC Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed December 16, 1919. Serial No. 345,433.

To all whom it may concern.

Be it known that 1, ASHLEY M. S'roKon, a citizen of the United States, residing at St. Paul, in the county of Ramsey and State of Minnesota, have invented a new and useful Apparatus for Sorting Clothing and'other Articles, of which the following is a specification. I

My invention relatesto improvements in apparatus for sorting clothing and other articles.

In what is called rough-dry work, laundries commonly employ similarly numbered pins of the safety-pin'type, to identify the pieces of a certain customer. When the work is received at the laundry, a number is assigned to the owner. Pins bearing this number are taken from ,a tray similarly numbered and placed in the garments or pieces of the patron. Articles belonging to numerous patrons are intermingled as they pass through the washing machines and driers. It is necessary, therefore, to thereafter separate the laundried pieces. In common practice, the intermingled articles are taken to a sorting room in which arms or brackets are arranged. Each bracket is numbered and the sorter is intended to hang all articles hearing the same number, upon The contents of each bracket comprises the work for an individual and the fact that articles are found on said bracket is sufiicient reason, without further investigation, for an attendant to wrap and mark the same for delivery to the patron to which the number on said bratket has been assigned. The ins are, of course, removed from the artic es and replaced in the trays. Errors often occur in distributing the pieces. A arment bearlng one number inadvertently p aced upon a bracket bearing a different number results in a shortage "to one of the patrons. The pins from each rack are placed in a tray, the fact that said pins are on a certain rack being sufficient reason for placing all of them in said tray. A misplaced pin, causing an error in the sorting room, results in repetition of the error until discovered and said misplaced pin located and returned to the proper group 0 It is the object of my invention to provide markers for clothing and racks and trays to receive the markers, certain markers being and trays.

Patented Aug. 23, 1921.-

A further object is to provide an appara- I tus including such markers, racks and trays, all of which are simple, durable and inexpens ve 1n construction, said markers being readlly applicable to their corresponding racks and trays.

W1th the foregoing and other objects in v1ew, which will appear in the following description, the invention resides in the novel combination and arrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective v1ew illustratinga rack with a marker applied theretoand shows in dotted lines, a garment suspended from said marker; Fig. 2 1s a perspective view of a tray showing a marker in position thereon; Figs S and 4 are side views of a marker, thelatter being shown m position upon a rack, which appears in cross-section and Fig. 5 is an end v1ew of said marker.

Referring to the drawing, 1 have used the reference letter A to indicate a rack, B to indicate a tray and C to designate a marker,

which may be placed u on said tray or applied to the rack, as s own. The rack A compr1ses a flange 10 adapted to be fixed to a wall or other support and a rack-bar 11 detachably mounted in said .flange and roj ecting horizontally or substantially so rom the support. a or other identifying symbol. The rackbar 11, as shown, is formed with ways 12 therein, the outer end of said bar being beveled or tapered as at 13. The invention contemplates the use of a plurality of such bars 11, each bar having a cross-sectional contour differing from that of each of the other bars. The ways 12, therefbre, may vary in form, number and arrangement.

The tray B comprises abase 14 furnished with an upright 0st 15 formed with ways 12 and a tapered tip13, as in the bar 11. A section through this post is identical with a similar section through the bar 11. M apparatus includes a plurality of trays equal in number tothat of the racks A, each tray bearing a number I) or other designatf ing symbol like that of the rack, whose bar ber 17 of the wire 17 and clamps the same The flange 10 bears a number capable of application, only, to certain racks gin 18 of said body is turned over one memin place thereon. A medial section is cut from the opposite margin of the body leaving a head 19 above the notch, so formed, and a bar 20- therebeneath. The head 19 is turned upon itself. to form a combination clasp and guard 21 for the pointed tip of the free member 17 of said Wire 17 and the end of said bar 20 is turned slightly to form a second clasp 22 for said free member at the base of the body 16. Said member 17 is released from the clasps 21 and 22 to permit the same to be pinned to an'article or removed therefrom and is thereafter returned to position within the grass of said clasps; This member of the wire obstructs the open side of the notch in the. body 16 and completes an aperture 23, which receives the rack-bar 11 and 0st 15. Wards 24 projecting from the b0 y fit in the ways 12 and 12 in said bar and post. Wards of various numbers, shapes and arrangement are formed in the bodies of various markers to fit'ifi corresponding ways of the various racks and trays. Upon the head of the marker C is placed a numeral 0 or other symbol corresponding with the symbol on its companion rack and tray. i

The supply of markers C, bearing a certain number, are kept, one upon the other, on the post 15 of a tray B similarly numbered. A graduated scale 25 on said post shows at a glance the quantitiy of markers on hand. A marker is pinned to each piece of a bundle to be laundried. When laundried and in being sorted from articles bearing other numbers, said pieces are hung upon a rack A bearing the number corresponding with the markers thereon. They cannot be hung on any other rack, because the wards 24 on the bodies of the markers willnot so permit. When the sorting is completed, the

contents of a rack is wrapped and directed for delivery to the patron to whom the rack number had been assigned, the markers A being first removed from the pieces. Said I markers. are then returned to their proper trays and there can be no error in this, because the wards 24 in the bodies of said markers will fit, only" upon the post of a tray correspondingly designed and numbered. It will, therefore, be seen that when the pins from a tray are again used to identify the pieces of a certain patron, no errors ing a yielding member, clasps onthe body to' secure said yielding member, said body having a notch therein to receive the rack, said yielding member being adapted to obstruct the open side of said notch and secure the marker upon said rack, said notch being designed to conform with and fit the rack.

3. In a device of the class described, an upright post, a ortablebase therefor, mark ers adapted to e supported by the base and arranged to be held, one upon the other, by said post, over which said markers may be freely passed, a graduated scale on said post to indicatethe number of markers thereon, each marker including means for attaching the same to an article of clothing and designed to prevent its application to. another post of different design.

In testimony wherof, Ii have signed my name to this specification.

ASHLEY M. STOKOE.

rack and a marker adapted to be applied to said rack, said marker comprising a body, 

